Hidden hazards can lurk in dark crevices, overhead beams, and even in the tools and routines you’ve trusted for years.
Dust is a major safety risk in certain food and drink operations, including those dealing with flour, spices, custard powder, instant coffee, sugar, dried milk, potato powder, and soup powder.
Due to risks it presents relating to worker health and safety and hygiene, it has been repeatedly flagged by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) as an area of concern.
Dust and health risks
Some dusts such as flour and grain are ‘respiratory sensitisers’ and exposure can lead to what is known as ‘occupational asthma’. Overall, the HSE estimates that between 9-15% of all adult asthma cases can be linked to work, with occupational asthma accounting for approximately 33% of food industry compensation cases under the Department of Work and Pensions Industrial Injuries Scheme.
Data from HSE indicated that in 2024, flour dust and enzymes containing additives (such as amylase) were the second most common cause of occupational asthma.
Symptoms of occupational asthma include wheezing, coughing, chest tightness, and severe shortness of breath – some people may even be unable to work if their condition is particularly bad, and in the most extreme cases, attacks can be fatal.
Exposure to flour dust can also cause conjunctivitis (irritated eyes), rhinitis (nose irritation), and occupational dermatitis (includes redness and itching as well as blistering of the skin).
The law requires businesses to adequately control exposure to materials in the workplace that cause ill health, including controlling exposure to dust.
Employers and employees must adhere to Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH).
“COSHH establishes a general exposure limit for dust, which, if exceeded, can pose risks to health,” explained Laura McMillan, partner and director of advocacy at law firm, Brodies.
“Some types of dust, such as flour, are recognised as being especially hazardous, so these are assigned specific workplace exposure limits (WEL) that are lower than the general threshold. The relevant WELs are detailed in an HSE publication known as EH40/2005. It is important to keep an eye out for any updates, as exposure limits may change with ongoing research.
“To comply with COSHH, food manufacturers should prevent exposure to harmful dust where possible through elimination or substitution of the product giving rise to the harmful dust.
“If this is not reasonably practicable, suitable control measures should be implemented - such as (i) effective ventilation, (ii) appropriate cleaning routines (that do not generate more airborne dust) and (iii) provision of protective equipment - albeit this should be considered a ‘last resort’. Health surveillance of workers may also be required.”
She continued: “In 2018, an English bakery was fined over £150,000 for failing to control dust at its premises.
“In particular, it was identified that the employee responsible for health and safety compliance did not have suitable experience to properly assess the risks, the ventilation in the factory was inadequate and the cleaning processes (use of dry brushing and compressed air) resulted in increased dust levels. In addition, the health surveillance programme was said to be deficient.”
Affected workers could also bring compensation claims, as McMillian explained: “The value of any one claim will vary depending on factors such as the severity of the illness and the age of the worker.
“If, for example, the worker is young and permanently disadvantaged in the labour market because of their occupational asthma, their claim could run to hundreds of thousands of pounds.
“While insurance may cover the cost of defending a compensation claim, there may well be a knock-on financial impact on the business through, for example, increased insurance premiums. Enforcement action and claims can also, of course, significantly affect a business’s reputation.
Explosive risk
But it’s not just risks to health; if mismanaged, dust can accumulate with the potential to contaminate food/drink products or even explode.
As the HSE sets out: “A dust cloud of any combustible material will explode where the concentration of dust in air falls within the explosion limits and a source of ignition of the required energy is present.”
It is worth noting that if a solid substance is finely ground, it may ignite more easily. Moreover, if any combustible substance is mixed or suspended in air at the correct concentrations and contained in a vessel or building when ignition occurs, a violent explosion can occur; and if it is uncontained, it could result in a fireball.
The Dangerous Substances and Explosive Atmospheres Regulations 2002 (DSEAR) which came into force in 2002 provides protection against risk from fire, explosion and other similar events that could arise due to dangerous substances on site.
The energy required to set a spark depend on the substance in question. It could be as low as the static emitted from a synthetic fibre jumper, or as high as that from a ‘fixed flame’ such as a gas fired boiler.
Typical processes that could generate explosible dusts in the food sector include: flour and provender milling, sugar grinding, spray drying of milk and instant coffee, and conveyance/storage of whole grains and finely divided materials.
Fire risks can also be caused through activities such as the use of finely sprayed oils, mixing portable flammable solvents like ethanol, or sterilisation (such as high temperature drying).
Hidden hazards and best practice
Our upcoming webinar Hidden Hazards in Food Production will explore the risk of dust further, alongside other threats you need to be aware of as a F&B producer.
Attendees will gain a practical view of where some of today’s biggest hazards lie and what best practice looks like in 2026. Register now.
